Abstract
In this plain language podcast, highlights from the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) Congress are discussed for a second year in a row, from the perspective of both a patient advocate and a healthcare professional. The patient advocacy track at the congress included two patient-focused sessions each day on a variety of topics. Here, the authors discuss the importance of involving patients in the design of clinical trials, as well as strategies to improve dialogue and connections between clinicians, researchers and patients. Patient advocacy organisations provide essential services to patients with cancer and their caregivers, and patient advocates play a critical role in helping to inform patients and caregivers in making clinical decisions. Congresses such as ESMO provide an important platform for patient advocates to connect with each other and with physicians and researchers to ensure that patients are placed at the centre of the conversation and are up to date on the latest findings that affect them. The authors also discuss the latest research on genitourinary cancers, focusing on bladder and kidney cancer. Promising results are emerging for combination antibody-drug conjugates and immunotherapy for patients with hard-to-treat, locally advanced or metastatic bladder cancer who are ineligible for platinum-based chemotherapy. In the management of kidney cancer, we may be reaching an end for immune checkpoint inhibitors on their own; the path ahead will be to find new targets and combinations. Podcast Audio (MP4 169766 KB).